Greenfield Community College

Nursing

Nursing

Overview

FAQs

Philosophy

Admission

Transfer

Faculty

Greenfield Community College’s state-approved Associate Degree Registered Nursing Program was established in 1963 as the first Community College Associate Degree Nursing Program in Massachusetts. Graduates of this program earn an Associate in Science and are eligible to take the licensing exam to become registered nurses (RNs). Responsibilities of the RN include full responsibility for the quality of nursing care provided to individuals and groups; health maintenance, teaching, counseling, collaborative planning and restoration of optimal functioning and comfort; and appropriate delegation of selected nursing activities to other RNs and/or health care personnel, including practical nurses and nursing assistants in a variety of health care settings. Primary employers include hospitals, long-term-care facilities, and community health agencies.

Nursing is a health occupations program with a special admissions process and health requirements. You must submit a separate application to this program in addition to a general application for admission to GCC. Please review all criteria prior to applying!

Clinical reasoning: Integrate best current evidence with clinical expertise and client/family preferences and values for delivery of optimal health care

Expected program outcomes

Eighty percent (80%) of students who enroll in clinical nursing course will complete the Associate Degree within six (6) semesters.

Seventy percent (70%) of GCC Nursing graduates will report employment in a nursing setting at least 16 hours/week by six (6) months after graduation.

Ninety percent (90%) of GCC Nursing graduates will pass the NCLEX-RN exam on the first try within three (3) months of graduation.

Ninety percent (90%) of GCC Nursing students will report general satisfaction on all course evaluations, the program evaluation, and on the graduate survey.

Ninety percent (90%) of graduates returning surveys will report general satisfaction with the quality of the program.

Ninety percent (90%) of graduates returning surveys will report participation in some continuing education programs during the first two years after graduating.

Twenty percent (20%) of GCC graduates will enroll and graduate from a BSN or MSN program within five (5) years of graduation.

Eighty percent (80%) of employers responding to surveys will report satisfaction with the quality of performance of GCC graduates within two (2) years.

Adopted Spring 2014

What’s next

Take the R.N. licensure examination, and enter the R.N. work force, and/or continue your education part-time or full-time at a Baccalaureate degree institution. We have articulation agreements and relationships to support seamless progression with Endicott College, Elms College, Fitchburg State University, UMass at Amherst, and AIC.

Students need to complete the minimum course work and math competency, in addition to submitting health records. Because GCC has more qualified students apply than we can accept, competitive applicants have:

excellent grades in the Biology courses (Human Anatomy and Physiology I and II, and Microbiology); the higher your grades, the stronger your application;

non-nursing courses completed (Psychology, English Composition I and II, Sociology, Humanities, Biology); the more courses from the nursing curriculum completed, the stronger your application;

Yes. GCC offers most of the general education courses needed to transfer into any BSN program. GCC ADN graduates can complete 60 non-nursing credits at GCC and transfer into University of Massachusetts, Amherst’s RN to BSN program. GCC has articulation agreements for RNs with American International College, Elms College, Framingham State and University of Vermont.

Yes. We highly recommend that interested students attend one of our information meetings prior to applying to our program! No registration is required. Dates are posted on our website as they become available.

Yes. Depending on space availability, an LPN graduate can transition in as a second semester or second year student. LPNs who are graduates of the GCC program with a GPA of 3.0 or higher entering the ADN program within 5 years are able to receive the most credit for their coursework. LPNs who are more than five years beyond graduation, do not have a GPA of 3.0 or attended another program can find more information on the Admissions webpage. It takes two to three semesters of coursework in the ADN program to complete the Associate’s in Science and be eligible for the licensing exam for Registered Nurses.

The philosophy of the ADN program supports the mission of GCC. The following statements indicate the beliefs of the nursing faculty about:

Concept of Nursing

Nursing
The faculty views nursing as an art and a science. The art of nursing is the expression of nurturing, caring, and comforting. The science is the application of relevant theory, practice, and principles. The nurse uses professional communication to integrate the application of knowledge and the maintenance of individuality and culture in providing services to individuals and families.

Humanity
Persons are physical, intellectual and spiritual beings. The faculty teaches this holistic approach to the person throughout the curriculum. Nursing courses emphasize assessment of individuals and their potential for growth. Liberal arts courses and the biological sciences provide the student with a foundation to understand the dimensions of the individual.

EnvironmentEnvironment includes internal and external elements that affect the individual. Nursing focuses on the person(s) in relation to their total environment. There is constant interaction between internal and external environments; it is impossible to separate the person from the environment.

Health/IllnessHealth and illness are dynamic and ever changing throughout the lifespan. They are separate but co-existing, represented along a continuous line called the health-illness continuum. This continuum spans high-level wellness, common health problems, and severe illness and death.

Concept of Nursing Education

We support the GCC Principles of Education in that we value the process of learning as much as the knowledge gained. Nursing education is a life-long learning process which continually provides for the acquisition and application of knowledge, skills and attitudes. The faculty affirms the individuality of our students, the complexity of their life experiences, and their ability to actively participate in the learning process. We believe that each encounter with students in the learning environment should engage compassion and concern. (reviewed 5/08)

Rationale of the Teaching/Learning Process

The following learning principles are primarily utilized by the faculty:

Content is presented from the simple to the complex

Learning occurs best when frequent and appropriate feedback is provided

Learning from reading, lectures, and clinical conferences is best retained when clinical application occurs immediately after theory is presented

Skills are best developed through repetitive practice

Individual learner needs must be taken into consideration

Critical thinking skills are essential.

The faculty is responsible for providing a learning environment where there is a free exchange of ideas within a framework of clearly defined learning objectives, and a specific body of knowledge essential to nursing practice. Students have frequent opportunities to evaluate course management, teaching strategies, and clinical resources. Students are expected to participate actively in the learning process. The college provides support services and referrals so that students may adapt to changes at school or at home to reach their objectives, whether professional, educational, personal, social, or economic.

Role of the Associate Degree Graduate

The faculty believes that Associate Degree Nursing (ADN) education combines general and technical educational courses to prepare nurses to provide patient/client care in variious health care and community settings. Associate degree nurses deal with common responses to changes in health status. The nursing curriculum prepares associate degree nurses to utilize the nursing process to assess, plan, implement, and evaluate individual responses to changes in health status within the scope of their responsibility and educational preparation. The ADN graduate is eligible to become a licensed registered nurse whose scope of practice includes roles as a provider of care, a manager of care and a member of the discipline of nursing. The ADN is accountable for their own professional practice and for assigning, delegating, and supervising care to peers, licensed practical nurses, and ancillary nursing personnel. In settings where there are baccalaureate and graduate degree nurses practicing, ADN graduates need to recognize the wider scope of practice and deeper breath of knowledge commensurate with that educational preparation. The Greenfield Community College graduate understands that completion of the program represents the beginning of an ongoing process of continuing education and personal development.

Acceptance into the Associate Degree Nursing Program at Greenfield Community College is highly competitive. Applications for admission are accepted between September 1 and early February of each academic year.You are strongly encouraged to submit early so that any missing or incomplete items can be resolved before the application deadline in February. Documentation for all requirements must be on file at the time you submit your application or it will be returned to you. Applications that are returned may be resubmitted upon completion, but no later than the application deadline.

If you attend GCC while your application is being considered, any additional support courses in progress will be added to your application upon completion. Additional support courses in progress at other colleges will be considered only if an official transcript with final grades is received by the transcript deadline indicated in the program application.

If you have ever attended GCC, you must have a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 2.0 to be eligible to apply to the Associate Degree Nursing Program.

Please feel free to contact the Office of Admission for information or updates at (413) 775-1801 or contact Laura Earl in the Dean of Student and Academic Affairs Office at (413) 775-1816 or earl@gcc.mass.edu.

CORI/SORI

Applicants need to know that individuals with a record of conviction by a Court of Law will be required to provide a complete explanation to the Board of Registration in Nursing in order to be permitted to take the licensing examination (NCLEX) after graduation. GCC requires that students meet the requirements of both a CORI (Criminal Offenders Record Information) and SORI (nationwide Sex Offender Registry
Information) check before entry and every six months. Students who fail to meet the CORI/SORI requirements will not be able to begin or continue in the program.

Additional requirements

The GCC Nursing Program also has a language proficiency policy requiring either the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) for students whose native language is not English or those who have not completed K-12 in the US.

Tuition & fees

Greenfield Community College offers advanced placement for Practical Nurses into the nursing program, depending on space availability.

For eligibility, a PN must

complete all the general education requirements taken by first semester students plus NUR 111 before beginning the second semester level, or complete all the general education requirements taken by first year students plus NUR 112 before beginning the second year level

be a graduate of an approved LPN Program

CPR certified

pass both of the following Excelsior exams below

Fundamentals of Nursing (Associate Degree)

Maternal and Child Nursing (Baccalaureate Level)

Practical Nursing graduates from GCC who had a “B” or better average and have graduated within five years are eligible for admission to the GCC Nursing Program at the second year level without needing to take the Excelsior exams.

Advanced placement applicants should contact Excelsior at the address below for a test application and study materials:

Applications will not be accepted until all general education requirements have been met.

Acceptance into the program will be conditional pending successful completion of the LPN Program and successful completion of LPN NCLEX.

Many of our graduates go on to complete a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN).

Completion of the BSN level of nursing education provides the graduate with a much greater variety of career opportunities and eligibility for graduate education.

GCC offers most of the general education courses needed to transfer into any BSN program. College advisors will be happy to assist you in planning your course of study.

A GCC/UMass transfer advisor is available by appointment; call (413) 775-1758 for more information.

GCC has articulation agreements for RNs with American International College, Elms College, Framingham State and the University of Vermont. GCC ADN graduates can complete 60 non-nursing credits at GCC and transfer into the University of Massachusetts, Amherst’s RN to BSN program. A majority of the required course work for these BSN programs can be taken at GCC.

More information about transfer opportunities are available from our Transfer Office.

Upcoming events

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Fast facts

Associate degrees can typically be completed in two (2) years. Associate in Arts (AA) degrees are designed for transfer. Associate in Science (AS) degrees are designed for immediate workforce entry. Certificates are designed for immediate workforce entry and can typically be completed in one (1) year.